Jake Peavy explains how he cut finger with fishing knife

FORT MYERS, Fla. — Sporting a significant white wrap on his left index finger Monday morning, Jake Peavy explained how he suffered his fishing knife-induced cut and what the prognosis is going forward.

“Just getting ready to go fishing,” said the Red Sox pitcher, referencing his Saturday activities. “I promised my little boy I would take him fishing so we went to Bass Pro [Shops] and we bought us some rods and reels that were combo’d. Trying to cut the wire tie that was holding them together. Using the knife with my right hand and holding the rod with my left and when I broke the wire tire it struck the knuckle pretty good.

“It’s a bummer. I didn’t think it was that crazy bad to the point I didn’t seek medical attention. That day we wrapped it up and went fishing. I came in here yesterday and realized we needed to have it stitched up and we would have to take some precautionary measures. You just don’t want to risk infection. I could go out and play today if it was a must, but you can’t risk infection and let it sweat. And me not getting it tended to right off the bat, you just don’t want to get it infected and that’s the reason we’re going to hold off a day or two.”

Peavy explained the cut was just below the knuckle, although he couldn’t definitively say how many stitches were needed to close the cut.

“It was more of a jab, when I came through, it was a brand-new knife out of the packet, which is huge as well,” he said. “I had just bought the knife. It was big, it was a brand-new knife, pretty sterile. But a brand-new knife, it was pretty sharp as well.”

Peavy added, “I don’t think it’s going to be long at all. I would like to get out play some catch and do some stuff tomorrow. The biggest thing is they’re not going to let me sweat until the healing process takes over. I believe I’m going to play catch and I would love to tell you I’m going to make my next start. That’s certainly what I’m aiming for and hopefully we can do that and get back on schedule and it doesn’t mess things up too much.”

Adding insult to injury, Peavy and his 5-year-old son came up empty on the excursion.

“You know what? We didn’t catch anything,” he said. “The funny part about it was when we showed up over at [John Lackey‘s house] – we went fishing over at Lack’s. I got over there, and when I pulled the knife, when the knife came out of me, I hit a little vein, so it was pretty bloody. Blood got all over my shorts, but I’d promised my little boy that I was going to take him fishing, and that’s why I didn’t seek attention. I’d promised my five-year-old. Y’all saw my older two. I bring them with me every day. But I leave him, and all he wanted to do was fish.

“We’d already been to Bass Pro. It was about 5:30. We’ve got an hour before dark. And so I had to wrap it up and I just wrapped it up and we went over to Lack’s, and when I got over to Lack’s, I had to throw my shorts away. I just wore the same ones. They go, ‘What in the world?’ I said, ‘I cut my hand.’ They were like, ‘You probably ought to get that looked at.’ Someone was going to do it in the morning. I couldn’t tell my five-year-old I didn’t want to go fishing anymore. It was his last day here. I couldn’t say, ‘We’ll go tomorrow.’ It wasn’t the biggest deal in the world. Not much we could have done except — the biggest thing was, they were freaking out, thinking I was cleaning fish with the knife, and then…”